Thermohydrodynamic Analysis of Solid-Liquid Lubricated Journal Bearings

Abstract

Thermohydrodynamic theory is extended to include the effect of solid particles in hydrodynamically lubricated journal bearings. Appropriate governing equations and boundary conditions are derived for the fluid flow and heat transfer processes taking place in a finite journal bearing. A general computer program is developed to numerically solve the governing equations. Results are provided for biphase lubricants containing oil with molybdenum disulfide and polytetrafluoroethylene particles. The computational results are in good agreement with experimental findings. The results indicate that the bearing temperature field is affected significantly by the presence of particles in oil. Moreover, it is found that inclusion of particles in the lubricant results in a higher coefficient of friction in the mid-range of the Sommerfeld number compared to that of the clean oil.